UPDATED 5:08 p.m. — Two more passengers aboard a Mekong river cruise ship have tested positive for Covid-19, after one passenger with the virus was put in hospital quarantine earlier this week, the Health Ministry said on Thursday.
Test results for a 73-year-old British man and his 69-year-old wife showed late Wednesday night that they had contracted the respiratory disease, the ministry said in a statement.
The couple is being quarantined in the Kampong Cham Provincial Hospital, while the ship is docked in the province after having left Vietnam last week and arriving in Phnom Penh on March 7, the ministry said.
Health Minister Mam Bunheng said on Tuesday that a 65-year-old British passenger of the Viking cruise ship had tested positive for the virus and was put in quarantine.
The woman, who was in stable condition, was transferred from a Kampong Cham hospital to one in Phnom Penh on Wednesday, state media outlet AKP reported.
The other 61 passengers and crew who have tested negative are being quarantined on land to monitor their health condition, the ministry said.
Torstein Hagen, chairman of Viking cruises, said on Wednesday that a river cruise passenger in Southeast Asia was exposed to Covid-19 while on an international flight and has been quarantined despite not showing symptoms. The remaining 28 passengers were also quarantined, he said in a statement.
Officials confirmed last week that one Cambodian has tested positive for Covid-19. He was put in quarantine in a Siem Reap hospital.
Health Ministry spokeswoman Or Vandine said the man did not have any symptoms of the virus.
In February, Cambodia confirmed its first Covid-19 case, a Chinese man who recovered and was released from hospital quarantine in Preah Sihanouk province the same month.
Additional reporting by Matt Surrusco
Updated at 5:08 p.m. with comments from Health Ministry spokeswoman Or Vandine.
